Almost all train connections to and from Germany are canceled
Published: Wednesday, Jan 24th 2024, 18:11
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The fourth rail strike by the German train drivers' union GDL has brought long-distance and regional services to a standstill since Wednesday morning. Almost all cross-border connections between Switzerland and Germany will be canceled until January 29, SBB announced on request.
In some cases, there may be restrictions until January 30. It is therefore recommended that travel to or through Germany be postponed to another date, SBB wrote to the Keystone-SDA news agency.
The majority of the canceled cross-border connections will be replaced by substitute trains, the statement continued. Domestic rail traffic is only marginally affected by the strike. Trains on the Swiss sections of the line will run as planned.
Basel S-Bahn with additional trains
Night trains traveling to or through Germany up to and including January 28 will also be affected by the restriction. The Railjet and night trains via Austria as well as the EC to Graz will run as planned, SBB announced on Wednesday.
SBB Germany is running eight additional trains between Freiburg i. Br. and Basel Badischer Bahnhof until Monday. According to SBB Germany, the aim is to maintain commuter traffic across the border to Switzerland. The trains of the tri-national S-Bahn Basel will run between 05:30 and 19:45 and can be used with the regular tickets for these lines.
Germany paralyzed
The expected six-day strike by the German Train Drivers' Union (GDL) began on Tuesday evening on freight services and early Wednesday morning on long-distance and regional services operated by Deutsche Bahn.
The emergency timetable for passenger services was stable in the night to Wednesday, said a railroad spokeswoman in Berlin this morning. As with the previous strikes, around 80 percent of long-distance trains will be canceled, according to Deutsche Bahn. There will also be considerable restrictions on regional services, the spokeswoman said.
There will also be considerable restrictions on freight traffic. "European freight traffic across the Alps, Poland or to Scandinavia as well as the seaports in Holland or Belgium are also affected," the rail company announced.
Losses in the billions
Companies are threatened with severe restrictions, including production losses, cutbacks and shutdowns in industry, said Tanja Gönner, Managing Director of the Federation of German Industries (BDI). "In the event of a six-day strike, it is not unrealistic to expect losses totaling up to one billion euros."
The rail strike is set to last until Monday evening at 6.00 pm. The GDL's fourth industrial action in the ongoing wage dispute with the federally owned company is "the longest in the history of Deutsche Bahn", said the spokeswoman. It is to last 136 hours in passenger transport and 144 hours in freight transport. For the first time in the current dispute, the strike also includes a complete weekend.
©Keystone/SDA
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